Everybody Learns from Disaster
by fmd-jade
Summary: Repetitive thinking is a death knell for the brain. Which might explain why Emily was slowly going crazy, lying here in the dark and staring at the ceiling of her bedroom. POST-EP for Emily and the Perfect Storm


It has been scientifically proven that repetitive thinking put you at a higher risk for anxiety disorder and depression. It was also the main symptom of schizophrenia, where thinking disorders went hand in hand with false belief about oneself or others, paranoia and hearing or seeing things that aren't really there. You kept having the same thoughts over and over until they made you insane.

Which went a long way toward explaining why Emily was slowly but surely going crazy lying in her bed and staring at the ceiling at two something in the morning.

Talk about being blind-sided.

Micah?

Seriously?

She had been thinking that kiss over and over and she just came up blank. Which, in all honesty, was a nice change from the thoughts that usually occupied her mind. But…

Micah?

Seriously?

It wasn't that her mind was completely blank when thinking about the kiss. It felt more like a pleasant numbness. Which sounded worse than it felt, because that kiss had been… wow. She had had no idea.

Emily tossed around and shut her eyes, willing herself to fall asleep. Like she had done for the last two hours.

She cursed herself as her mind strayed back to _the kiss_. She might just as well admit herself to the psychiatric ward in the morning. If not for unbreakable repetitive thinking patterns, then for sleep deprivation.

But even worse than thinking about _the kiss _was pondering what _could_ have happened afterwards.

If Will hadn't shown up.

If Tyra hadn't decided that they had to leave.

And worst of all:

If she hadn't been such a coward.

She liked to think she'd have kissed him again. Because the whole kissing thing had actually been great. For the first time in days, weeks really, if she was honest, her mind had been blank. Totally and utterly free of chaos. Of course that hadn't stopped her thoughts from raging through her mind as soon as Will showed up and broke the spell. But for that fleeting moment, when her eyes had met his…

She groaned and pulled her pillow over her head.

Oh. God.

Micah.

Micah had kissed her and she had just left him standing there. With Will. She had just left him there after this amazing and wonderful person had gone out on a limb and kissed her.

She was an idiot.

A complete moron.

Screw sleep.

::

"Emily? Where are you going?"

Emily winced and turned back around to the dark apartment.

"I have to go somewhere."

Now actually, before her higher brain functions caught up with her and stopped her.

Although Tyra just woke up, she was up instantly and jumped over the back of the couch.

"No." She closed the door and stood in front of it.

"Tyra."

"Emily. You said you're over Will. And as your friend I feel like I'm supposed to stop you from doing something stupid."

Emily gently removed Tyra's arm from the doorframe. "I'm not going to see Will."

"You're not?"

Emily shook her head. "No. I promise. But I'm leaving now, so you should go back to sleep."

Emily had made a mistake tonight. And she had every intention of remedying that.

::

Micah opened the door after the first knock with a surprised and apprehensive look in his eyes, before forcing a small smile on his face.

"Tamie. What are you doing here?"

She ignored his attempt at levity and took a decisive step closer to him.

"I'm working on resolving my existential crisis." She said and looked deep into his eyes.

She could see it there. The hope. The adoration. The trepidation.

"At three in the morning?" He asked with a low voice, his darting to her lips and back up to her eyes.

"Doesn't look like you were sleeping." Emily whispered teasingly, before her nerves got the better of her. "Now shut up please, because I'm working on something here."

Micah smirked as Emily leaned in further, her toes knocking against his. "But only because you said please." He said against her lips as he met her halfway and pressed his lips to hers.

He grabbed her hips, his hands travelling over her waist and back in a way he hadn't dared touch her earlier. Emily's hands meanwhile wound around his neck, gently tugging and playing with his hair as he deepened the kiss. She had to moan as he gently caught her lower lip between his teeth. She tugged at his hair in retaliation and Micah had to smile against her lips.

Emily's eyes remained closed after he drew back. All too soon for her liking. She wasn't sure if the stars she saw behind her eyes were because of the overwhelming kiss or the lack of oxygen.

When she opened her eyes again Micah stared at her with one of those looks that, now that she had an idea what he meant by them, made her question how she had never seen this coming.

"Okay." She said determinedly.

Micah frowned at her and laughed nervously. "Okay?"

Emily nodded and a soft smile played across her lips.

Micah couldn't resist. Not with that self-satisfied look upon her face. He reached out, sliding his fingers across her cheeks and into her hair. Tugging gently, he pulled her closer again and Emily braced herself against his chest as his lips captured hers in a possessive manner. He barely noticed as her hands moved to his back to hold on.

He kissed her long and hard, brushing his lips against hers and seeking out her tongue with his own. One of Emily's hands trailed down, moving underneath his t-shirt, and lightly caressed the skin at his lower back. Micah wrapped one arm around her waist, tightening his grip on her as moved a few steps backwards into his apartment. His other hand blindly searched for the door and slammed it shut behind them.

He pulled back with a last peck to her lips, breathless, and rested his forehead against hers. "Definitely better than okay." His hands rested low on her waist, his thumbs stroking over the sliver of bare skin between her jeans and her sweater.

Emily giggled. "Definitely." Her right hand had retreated from his hair and was playing with the collar of his shirt.

"What about your crisis?" He didn't even know how he was able of coherent thought right now. Or why he kept talking when her second hand roamed over his bare back beneath his shirt.

"No. It's all distinctly clear right now." She said cheekily.

"I'm glad." He leaned back in to kiss her. He couldn't resist. It was the most humbling, enchanting, addicting thing.

::

Emily snuggled further into the pillows, lying on her stomach, while Micah was on his side propped up next to her.

He sighed contentedly and let his fingers lightly trail across her bare back, before leaning over and pressing a soft kiss against her shoulder blade. And another against her temple, before drawing back.

"Are you freaking out yet?" He carefully teased her, playing with a strand of her hair.

She lazily smiled at him. "No." Instead, she was glad to find her head exquisitly… empty. "I actually think the chaos is gone."

"Really?" Micah asked disbelievingly. He lifted his hand to stroke her cheek.

Emily caught his fingers in her hand and pressed a small kiss to them. She shrugged. "Or maybe I just don't care right now."

They shared a small laugh. Micah's eyes trailed over her bare back and down her body, hidden beneath his covers.

"I've been thinking about what you said." He looked back up to find her eyes closed.

"What's that?"

He tugged on her fingers still tangled with his and she opened her eyes again, dreamily catching his gaze once more.

"That we have only known each other for a few months but somehow it feels a lot longer…" He trailed off, looking for the right words. "And you're right. It is crazy."

Emily giggled. "Well, crazy is my specialty."

"Good to know." Micah said, before leaning down and kissing her again. Emily sighed against his mouth and her hand let go of his fingers to move to his cheek, caressing his skin there.

Micah shifted back and smiled at her again, the back of his fingers lightly stroking her cheek.

"So, what do you say, Dr. Owens. Want to have some dinner together after your shift?"

Emily leaned back, pretending to be shocked. She couldn't quite keep the wide smile from her face. "Are you asking me on a date?"

"No…" Micah played along, tucking her hair behind her ear. "Just a casual dinner."

"Pity. I'd have said yes to a date."

::


End file.
